Most Recent Messages in ICDs

adjusting to a defibrillator

Hello everyone! I had an ICD implanted in December of 2021. Since then I have tried to follow the doctor's guidelines for healing to get back to my usual routine. However my ICD causes me a lot of discomfort. In additon, it is progressively slipping down from where it was surgically implanted. I've seen the doctor and talked to them on the phone several times since December. They tell me that I'm so thin that there is nothing to keep it in place and the only way they can fix it is...

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There's that mule kicking me again....

That darn mule decided to kick me in the chest again.  Just sitting in front of the computer, decided to browse the menu for my local pizza joint and felt it spin up.  This time I figured I would show it whose boss.  I slammed my fists down on the desk and said "NO,  NO,   not tonight.  We are not doing this tonight, you are not going to shock me", and with that BAM!  Knocked me right off my chair.  That was Thursday Feb 3rd 2022.  C...

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Pulsating Arm

Evening

 

I recently has one of the only issues I have ever had in the last 12 years. Near to where the wires are for my icd my muscles were pulsating very strongly. 
 

after been checked out by an ambulance crew the but it down to a nervous twitch. Prior to this I was putting my daughter to bed. 
 

the next day I spoke to my ICD nurse and she said it was not related to my long qt or icd. 
 

have any of you h...

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CRT-D for Low EF

  • by miker
  • 2022-01-02 16:51:21
  • ICDs
  • 1028 views
  • 3 comments

I had a heart attack 13 years ago (49), took about 6 months to start feeling right but heart rate/blood pressure always remained low, like high 40's low 50's and 100/70. Year after year Cardiologist never said much other than things looked great. Had a near-syncope 4 years ago while eating breakfast. Put on Holter and after 2 weeks recorded another VT, it stopped spontaneously in about a second and I felt momentarily light headed. Echo, stress test, catheterization, EP test...

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ICD shock while driving

I had my ICD for almost 9 months and I took a full time WFH job to minimize my driving. I haven't had any shocks or ATP so far (knock on wood).Just wondering how it feels when you get a shock while driving? Do you feel any symptoms which will give you some time like 30 secs to a minute so that you can pull over? If there are no warning signs and you get a shock, can you control the vehicle ? This is the one thing I am most scared about while driving my daugther and mom (they both cant dri...

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Icd implanted under breast muscle

Hello everyone! It is so wonderful to find this club. I am two weeks away from my surgery and would like to connect. I am so amazed by the support... it's so wonderful. 
I was wondering if anyone had the pacemaker or defibrillator implanted under the breast muscle? 
 

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experience with Abbott Gallant DR ICD?

Hi All,

I'm new here. 44yr old male. I got diagnosed with lamin cardiomypathy which basically took me for complete surprise. I am coping with it all. Have bouts of depression about it but what can I do. Does anyone have any experience with an Abbott Labs Gallant DR ? I hear its fairly new but wanted to know if anyone has this ICD. It seems to have a fair bit of technology trademarked. I was implanted yesterday at NYU Langone by a renowed EP and I seem to be healing fine, though...

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Garmin Chest strap heart rate monitor

I have had my devise for just over a year. In this time I have had a real issue getting it dialed in to support my running, Biking and swimming. Although I think we are finally making some progress I had complications with sarcoidis.

I am finally at a point that I can get back to exercise. What I am finding is that my heartrate is staying extremly low and I go anarobic imediately. 

prior to this happening I was an avid triathlon and trianing was a huge part of my life.

...

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Icd removal

  • by Johnl
  • 2021-09-24 19:55:29
  • ICDs
  • 1103 views
  • 4 comments

Has anyone been able to convince their doctors to remove your icd or pacemaker?

I'm 28 years old, I got my icd put in at 25 due to 2 random collapses, since having the icd I haven't had any other episodes

The icd has caused 2 blood clots which led to 2  heart attacks and a few episodes of AF

i was on rivaroxaban with the second clot, changed to warfarin which made me feel sick and tired everyday, changed to eliquis which was fine for a year but now struggling to...

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I got the expected ICD and maybe a heart transplant listing

After a cardiac arrest (luckily in hospital on a heart monitor with a cardiac nurse present) on 7th September (VT requiring 1 shock), I got my ICD (VVI) on 16th September, and after a pocket haematoma was sorted with compression, I came home yesterday (17th).

The two hospitals involved (Great Western at Swindon, and Queen Elizabeth at Birmingham) conferred and transferred me from Swindon to Birmingham so that my heart transplant assessment could go ahead as scheduled (before the ICD was...

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Possibly joining the ICD club

Well, this has been an exciting week. 

Last Thursday the heart transplant team at Birmingham rang with the news that they were restarting detailed assessments, but as two long outpatient days rather than three inpatient days. They hope to assess me next week subject to a review of a recent lung function test which showed my lungs operating at 75% of normal - not great when you add it to their July assessment of my kidneys at 33% of normal, so I already wouldn't be surprised if...

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Meditronic MyCareLink

  • by Choco
  • 2021-08-11 11:37:31
  • ICDs
  • 2564 views
  • 6 comments

My Carelink monitor has been unplugged, no power,  for about six months -  got accidentally switched off and I didn't notice.

Today the hospital called, they'd tried to get a reading but of course couldn't.

So I plugged the monitor in and it's connected but it seems the reader isn't working. I get error message 3230 and none of the three display lights on the reader is working.

aDoes this mean the reader battery is totally flat?  Will...

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ICD discharge

Here I am back again.  It's been a while but my ICD discharged on me again on 7/19/21.  I'm feeling that PTSD again, every time my heart flutters, is it going to go off again.  I thought after the shock storm in Sept 2018 I thought a single discharge wouldn't affect me this much, but it has.  And the doctors are no help.  The electrophysiologist increased my Amiodarone with the comment "We can't have this keep going off like this".  Obvi...

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LBBB PACING

Just was made aware of LBBB Pacing which is a new technique. Just wondered how it differs from HIS bundle pacing and if it involes a third wire. 

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Upgrade to CRT-D tomorrow!

Another update to y'all,

I am trying to write all this down in posts to keep those curious up to date and also in hopes that if anyone ever goes through the same process I have they can have some expieriences to reference.

We are now just waiting for my insurance to approve my "transplant assessment". Which at this point is more of a formality than it is about getting the tests (most of them I have already had done).  Goal is to get me listed in the next 4-6 wee...

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pain

My dif/pacer started beeping a week ago and I went in this past thursday for them to turn the beeping off. I did not even realize it was me that was beeping until they called and told me. I have to have a battery change in a couple of weeks but my questions is that tonight I had a pain where my device is and it rain down my left arm. It was a sharp and tingling pain and it stayed around for a few minutes. Is that normal after they turn the beeping off.

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Beta blocker

I was put on a pacemaker three days ago. The same day that it was put in my heart rate went up so high they decided to put me on a beta blocker. Now my heart rate is lowered so much that it's constantly kicking in my pacemaker. I'm not feeling good with it and wondered if anyone else had problems with beta blockers and how to get them adjusted. It's making me foggy in the brain along with this morning I had to episodes where I stopped breathing and woke up gasping for air. I&...

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Possible replacement of PM with ICD

Hi 

I've had a PM, for second degree heart block, since October 2018 with no issues.  Last week my cardiologist's secretary phoned and said the cardiologist wants to see me - This appointment is tomorrow.

It seems my PM picked up an episode of ventricular tachycardia [VT].  I don't know how long the episode lasted or if there was more than one.  I was unaware of any episode. 

My general practictioner advised me that the cardiologist most...

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Upgrading my PM to ICD on 3/19

My EP and Cardiologists discussed my case after the cardiac MRI (which was normal) and decided to put an ICD and extract out a lead couple of days from now.I am 46 years old, male living in Dallas TX and had my dual lead Medtronic PM for 6.5 years which I got due to Atrial flutter plus bradycardia back in 2014. Couple of vtac episdoes over 30 secs sealed the decision in favour of an ICD.I did not feel any symptoms during those episdoes. My last months echo showed a drop of EF to 45% but...

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Cardiac Sarcoidosis

Hi!

Has anyone got cardiac sarcoidisis and is fitted with an ICD? I'm due to get one and was researching a bit online and saw that in some studies they state that patients with CS and ICD's are at high risk for ventricular arhythmias and of inappropriate shocks and device complications..

Is that true from your experience?

thanks for any input on this

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Your favorite poem is “Ode to a Cardiac Node”.

Member Quotes

In fact after the final "tweaks" of my pacemaker programming at the one year check up it is working so well that I forget I have it.